Identify which position you are applying for and provide specific examples of how your background meets the position’s education, experience and language requirements.

When you apply on-line for a position, you will receive an automatic confirmation. Your application will remain on file in our database and will be considered for the specific position for which you have applied. If, in the future, your profile matches the requirements of a different posting, you may be notified of the match and will be invited to apply for the position.

No, all applicants must be legally entitled to work in Canada (visit http://www.cic.gc.ca for more information)

SCC revised the standards development program requirements to ensure greater clarity, consistency and responsiveness to the needs of Canadian stakeholders. All SCC-accredited SDOs have met the same requirements in order to receive SCC accreditation. The existing SDOs, through the Standards Development Organizations Advisory Committee (SDOAC), were consulted throughout the development of the 2017 Requirements & Guidance documents.

Key updates to the requirements include changes to the duplication resolution process and the implementation of a self-declaration framework. The improvements to the Duplication Resolution Mechanism (DRM) were made with the goal of reaching a timely outcome and a decision that is responsive to Canadian stakeholder needs. These changes include a more proactive role for SCC to facilitate discussions between SDOs, the introduction of specific evaluation criteria, a clearer complaint and appeal process, and a compliance and verification process with Action Plan (issued following SCC decision on duplication).

The self-declaration framework was introduced to allow SCC-accredited SDOs in good standing to self-declare compliance with SCC’s Requirements & Guidance documents for the publication of their standards as NSCs. The proposed self-declaration framework is based on a careful review of existing process controls, which highlighted opportunities for improvement. These improvements make the process simpler, more efficient and reduce administrative burden, while still maintaining the high-trusted value of National Standards of Canada. For a list of SDOs that have been granted self-declaration status, please visit our directory of accredited SDOs.

SCC has an obligation to review applications from organizations wishing to become accredited under its various programs, and to approve applications when organizations are deemed to meet program accreditation requirements. The addition of new SDOs offers more options and greater flexibility within Canada’s standardization network. The accreditation of US-based standards development organizations helps provide more standardization solutions to better serve stakeholders such as Canadian government, industry and consumers. This further protects the health and safety of Canadians while enhancing Canada’s economic competitiveness.

In a number of industry sectors, Canadian experts already participate directly in standards development activities of these US-based organizations, and having access to these experts for the development of National Standards of Canada is an important element of SCC accreditation. Expanding SDO accreditation also promotes harmonization of standards between Canada and the US, broadening opportunities for trade between the two countries while also presenting solutions to bilateral regulatory issues.

When the expansion of SDOs was first proposed, SCC undertook a year-long consultation process with government, industry and the four Canadian SDOs at the time (CSA Group, Bureau de normalisation du Québec, Canadian General Standards Board and Underwriters Laboratories of Canada). This was instrumental in understanding various perspectives surrounding the issues, opportunities and challenges of expanding the number of SCC-accredited SDOs.

For the purposes of the Standards Council's Member Program, you are a member if you are not an employee of the Standards Council, but find yourself doing most or all of the following:

• undertaking tasks or responsibilities on behalf of the Standards Council;
• taking part in policy committees, technical committees, sub-committees or task, working or ad-hoc groups of these committees; or assessments as part of an accreditation program;
• offering your time, skills, knowledge and energy to advance the objectives of the Standards Council;
• representing Canada in regional or international standardization forums;
• working on behalf of your organization or stakeholder group in partnership with the Standards Council and the National Standards System; or
• doing all of this because of your background or expertise in a particular subject area.

Members are expected to demonstrate:

• active participation, commitment, willingness to undertake committee work, and prepare required reports and meeting documents;
• ability and willingness to meet and respect deadlines, and follow SCC procedures, directives and terms of reference;
• ability to travel and attend meetings nationally/internationally;
• commitment to participate in committee work electronically and in-person;
• sufficient time, resources, and financial support to actively participate on committees;
• representation of stakeholder groups and views;
• ability to work within a group environment; and
• the knowledge and technical expertise related to the committee or group.

You will receive an automatic confirmation after submitting your application online. Your application will remain on file and will be considered for the specific position for which you have applied.

Because there are more than one stakeholder interest categories to fill, volunteer opportunities remain open until the volunteer positions are filled. However, SCC reserves the right to remove the volunteer posting at any time. We recommend  you visit the site often to keep up to date with our volunteer opportunities.

The integration of work between an SCC mirror committee and an SCC-accredited SDO committee related to standards development involving the preparation of Canadian and international standards documents and deliverables with the objective of achieving the greatest practicable degree of commonality in accordance with policies and procedures of SCC and the applicable SDO.

Note: Harmonization of SCC mirror committees with the technical committee of an SCC-accredited SDO is done in accordance with CAN-P-1005 - Operational requirements for granting and maintaining SCC/SDO harmonization. 

The main difference between SCC and government regulators is that SCC promotes the use of voluntary standards whereas government regulators use mandatory regulations that require others to follow a set of obligations.

Voluntary standards are developed through consensus among stakeholders in a particular field. Stakeholders may include industry, government and the public.

One example of a voluntary standard is the plug. Electronics manufacturers agree to use the same kind of plug on all equipment and, as a result, plugs on electronic devices fit in all outlets.

One example of a mandatory regulation is nutrition labels on packaged food which are a mandatory requirement of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA).

Standardization is the development and application of standards. It includes:

• the work of the committees that develop standards
• the publication of standards by standards development organizations
• the recognition of standards by national standards bodies such as SCC
• the application of standards by businesses, suppliers and customers
• the verification that products or services conform to applicable standards (conformity assessment)
• the accreditation of organizations that provide conformity assessment services
• the use of standards and conformity assessment as an element in public policy as well as in international trade

For more information, visit SCC’s orientation module Introduction to Standards and the Standards Council of Canada.

All Standards Development Organizations (SDOs) adhere to the same SCC standards development, or adoption, requirements. As part of these requirements, SDOs must include technical experts and stakeholders who will be affected by the standard in their technical committees when developing standards. As a result, any SDO can develop a standard in any area.

SCC accredited SDOs are expected to coordinate their work to avoid duplication within the Canadian standards development environment and to promote opportunities for harmonization wherever possible. 

The accreditation requirements outlined in Requirements & Guidance – Accreditation of Standards Development Organizations directly address possible duplication of standards in the system (consult Section 4, Requirement 4.3, Avoiding Duplication), and were clarified and strengthened by including statements such as:

“The SDO accreditation requirements are in line with accepted international standards best practices derived from the World Trade Organization, Technical Barriers to Trade (WTO/TBT), Annex 3 provisions, ISO/IEC Guide 59 Code of good practice for standardization, and the following Canadian principles: consensus; equal access and effective participation by concerned interests; respect for diverse interests and identification of those who should be afforded access to provide the needed balance of interests; mechanism for dispute resolution; openness and transparency; open access by interested parties to the procedures guiding the standards development process; clarity with respect to the processes; Canadian interest consideration as the basis for the development of standards by SDOs; and avoiding duplication of standards or overlap with the work of other SDOs or with the work of relevant international or regional SDOs.” (Page 4)

SCC’s role is to support the standardization priorities of government and industry in Canada. As such, we welcome comments and suggestions by industry on approaches to avoid duplication of efforts and on our role in managing subject area recognition. Visit our Contact Us page to provide comments.

Canada’s national standardization network is the network of people and organizations involved in voluntary standards development, promotion and implementation in Canada.

There are hundreds of organizations accredited by SCC to look after the day-to-day work of standards development, certification of persons, calibration and proficiency testing, management systems registration, and auditor training and certification.

Other government and non-governmental bodies also take part in the national standardization network. Some of these participate in accreditation programs as SCC partners. Others work on standards-related issues such as international trade agreements.

Almost 15,000 volunteers from industry, government, non-governmental organizations and the general public are involved in developing standards. Volunteers also provide their expertise to accreditation programs and advisory committees. Even the members of SCC’s Governing Council are volunteers. The employers who support the work of these volunteers are important contributors to the national standardization network.

For complete information on how to participate in international standardization visit: Get Involved in Standardization. 

For more information, visit Canadian Standards Development: Program Overview.

A standard may be withdrawn if it:

• is not up-to-date technically
• does not reflect current practice or research
• is not suitable for new and existing applications (products, systems or processes)
• is not compatible with current views and expectations regarding quality, safety and the environment

This status is also used if:

• the standard is withdrawn and not replaced by the author for any of the reasons mentioned above
• there has been a change in the standard designation (e.g. if CSA A1234-2000 is superseded by CSA B5678-2005)

Consumer Product Safety information is provided by Health Canada,  if you are concerned about the safety of a consumer product or are thinking of importing consumer goods into Canada.

As Health Canada regulates areas such as consumer product safety, drug and medical devices, natural health products, cosmetics and other areas, you may also wish to review the related guidelines for each topic on the Health Canada website.

To further investigate provincial and territorial requirements related to conformance of products, you may search for provincial regulations on the Canadian Legal Information Institute website.

For products covered under the categories of building, plumbing or fire, the provincial or territorial authorities require a product certification mark.

Any complaints with an accredited organization must be submitted in writing to that organization. If it is not handled to the satisfaction of the complainant, it can be raised with SCC. SCC will review the accredited organization’s handling of the complaint from a process perspective. Please note that SCC can only deal with complaints regarding the requirements (standards) to which the organization is accredited, and not in matters such as invoicing and compensation.

Contact SCC to determine if your existing accreditation can be transferred. If the accreditation body you are transferring from is a recognized signatory of the International Accreditation Forum (IAF), the process of transferring is that much easier.

A regulator enforces standards, codes or regulations and has legal power and governance over the regulation. An accreditation body has no such mandate or power. Accreditation is done on a voluntary basis, but accreditation can be mandated by regulators.

Energy-consuming products are regulated under Canadian Energy Efficiency Regulations, overseen by Natural Resources Canada (NRCan). To consult the legislation to verify whether this regulation covers your product, visit NRCan’s Guide to Canada's Energy Efficiency Regulations web page.

If you plan to manufacture or import products that you think may be classified as toxic substances, we suggest that you review the following informational sources provided by Environment Canada under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA):

• CEPA 1999—overview of the CEPA with guidance documents

In principle, the vast majority of Canadian and international standards are voluntary.

In practice, the demands of the marketplace make many standards mandatory. A bolt manufacturer whose products do not fit a standard nut, for example, will probably not have many customers.

Buyers who want to assess whether their suppliers provide goods that conform to standards have a number of options. They may take supplier’s word for it. They may check the products themselves. They may also insist that the supplier ask an independent third party to verify the products conformity. These third parties often indicate conformity by putting their own label, or mark, on the product.

Government regulators make a standard mandatory by referring to it in legislation. Provincial and territorial electrical codes, for example, require electrical products to conform to Canadian electrical safety standards. Under these regulations, products cannot be sold unless they have been tested and certified by a recognized conformity assessment body.

One way of recognizing conformity assessment bodies is through accreditation. SCC is Canada’s national accreditation body for organizations that provide standards-related conformity assessment services.

For more information visit SCC’s orientation module, Accreditation: Where Standards, quality and conformity meet about the value and importance of accreditation. SCC also has a searchable directory of accredited certification bodies. 

SCC does not develop standards or verify the conformity of products or services to standards but rather accredits the organizations that do. To find a certification body, visit the appropriate accreditation program on our website. You can search for an SCC-accredited client from the directory of accredited bodies found in left-hand sidebar. 

SCC offers 10 accreditation programs including testing laboratories, certification of products and electrical inspections. Details about each program can be found in SCC’s Accreditation Program Overview. 

Information on Canadian import regulations is available from the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA).

Information on requirements that apply to imported products (such as whether they need to be certified as meeting particular standards) can be obtained from government organizations that administer these requirements. To search for the relevant mandatory requirements that apply to your product, refer to the database on the Canadian Legal Information website.

The Consumer Product Safety Directorate at Health Canada assists in the protection of Canadians by researching, assessing and collaborating in the management of the health risks and safety hazards of consumer products. 

SCC is an accreditation body. It accredits certification bodies that can certify your organization to ISO 9001, for example. All SCC-accredited certification bodies are listed on SCC’s Directory of Accredited Certification Bodies as well as testing and calibration laboratories (including those recognized under the OECD Good Laboratory Practices).

To find a product, process or service certification body with specific capabilities, please search our directory with a product category, the International Classification for Standards (ICS) code or standard.

Electrical safety falls under the responsibility of provincial and territorial authorities. Provincially recognized certification marks confirm compliance of products that have an electrical component to the Canadian Electrical Code (CEC) CAN/CSA C22.1 published by the CSA Group.

Certification marks are issued by SCC-accredited product certification bodies. Any certification mark originating from an SCC-accredited US-based certification body needs a small "c" in front of the mark to indicate to the user, inspector and retailer that, even though the mark is from the United States, the assessment of the product has complied with the CEC. To obtain the listing of provincial and territorial recognized electrical safety certification marks, contact your provincial or territorial electrical safety authority, which can be found on the Code Authorities in Canada web page on the UL website.

Under Canada's constitution, provinces and territories regulate the design and construction of new houses and buildings, and the maintenance and operation of fire safety systems in existing buildings. While the national model building, fire and plumbing codes are prepared centrally under the direction of the Canadian Commission on Building and Fire Codes, adoption and enforcement of the codes is the responsibility of the provincial and territorial authorities. For more information on the adoption and enforcement of national model codes, visit the Canadian Codes Centre website.

To search for code-related federal and provincial legislation, visit the Canadian Legal Information Institute website.

For Canadian code-related questions, we invite you to contact the relevant provincial code authorities, which can be found on the UL website under Code Authorities in Canada.

Technical queries regarding interpretation of the content of a standard are outside of SCC’s area of expertise and responsibility. These activities are typically handled by regulators, consultants or engineers. You may also wish to contact the Standards Development Organization (SDO) who published the standard. 

In Canada, information on importing and exporting can be obtained from the Canada Border Services Agency.

Information on requirements that apply to imported products (such as whether they need to be certified as meeting particular standards) can be obtained from government organizations that administer these requirements. To search for the relevant mandatory requirements that apply to your product, refer to the database on the Canadian Legal Information website.

As Canada’s standardization leader, SCC provides accreditation programs for laboratories, inspection bodies, product and personnel certifiers, and management systems certification bodies. Our accredited bodies will provide testing and certification services for organizations operating in a wide variety of industry sectors.

However, SCC does not have regulatory authority in its mandate. Any mandatory standards or specifications and related conformity assessment requirements need to be reviewed with the proper federal, provincial or territorial regulatory authority.

For technical questions on code requirements, we suggest contacting the Canadian provincial or territorial enforcing regulatory body or bodies, which can be found on the Code Authorities in Canada web page on the UL website.

In Canada, information on importing and exporting can be obtained from the Canada Border Services Agency.

Information on requirements that apply to imported products (such as whether they need to be certified as meeting particular standards) can be obtained from government organizations that administer these requirements. To search for the relevant mandatory requirements that apply to your product, refer to the database on the Canadian Legal Information website.

The Consumer Product Safety Directorate at Health Canada assists in the protection of Canadians by researching, assessing and collaborating in the management of the health risks and safety hazards of consumer products.